It then occurred to me that there have been a number of times at my new
job that people in our division have made reference to “all of us Type A
PR folks.”
It was an uncomfortable assumption that struck me with a distinct
closeted feeling. I found myself nodding my head and agreeing, “Yeah,
we’re all so
intense, aren’t we? Hurrah!” when I know damn well that Type B fits me
and my approach to work like a memory-foam chair cupping my buttocks.

There’s definitely an image of the 24/7, intense “pro” who is working
twelve massive crises at once with nary a drop of sweat on her brow. But
first
disclaimer: hospital PR is not the same as Big Agency PR. I don’t want
to sell what we do short, though. While we don’t serve clients, hospital
PR folks
have been known to put out or manage rather formidable fires. Second disclaimer: even if I were at a Big Agency, my personality would be the same, which I
don’t think would be a detriment.

What the Type B personality brings to PR, or work in general, is an
emotionally even-handed approach to situations. In the midst of freaking
out (and
freaking out seems to happen a lot more than you’d think at hospitals),
my instinct is not to “attack” as much as it is to listen and think
through.

I’m
not much for competition, but am driven to achieve the best outcomes for
my hospital. It’s just better for my heart and mind that I don’t take a
loss with
devastation, any more than I celebrate a victory with huge amounts of
emotion—on to the next project. I’ve found this helpful for navigating a
number of
battles with our State planning board and competitor hospitals, in which
outcomes are highly unpredictable and the workload/time investment on
the projects
is quite high. I’ve seen good people get emotionally devastated by an
outcome, and I don’t quite understand it.

I hope that more of my Type B brothers and sisters come forward in
PR/marketing and let your calm, mellow voices be heard—but don’t shout
over everyone
else, just let the room quiet and then speak up. Let others know that
we’re not lazy or disorganized—we just don’t like spending time creating
order when
it’s all right there in our minds. Challenge everyone’s assumptions of
who we are—unless they start arguing with you, in which case, just let
them go on
and know that we’re going to live longer than them anyway probably.